Clutter 18: Joe's Ultimate Challenge - Collector's Edition

[h1]Puzzles, Puzzles, and More Puzzles :o[/h1] [h2]Introduction[/h2] [i]Clutter 18: Joe's Ultimate Challenge - Collector's Edition[/i] is a (mostly) puzzle matching game in which there are a total of more than 1800 puzzle levels. The puzzles range from matching two of the same pieces to fitting missing pieces into a picture, like completing a jigsaw puzzle. There are even the classic mahjong solitaire levels as well as challenging word puzzles in which you have to rearrange letters in order to recreate famous quotes. Although there are no predetermined set difficulty levels, you can choose to customize the timer and other features to make the levels as easy or difficult as you wish. Also, at the time of this review, no Steam achievements are present and the game won't count towards a user's global total until it's out of "Steam is learning about this game". [h2]Review[/h2] This is the first [i]Clutter[/i] game that I've ever played, so I went into it blindly, not knowing what to expect. However, I was very excited to give it a try, and thanks to Grey Alien Games, I went through the gauntlet on this one, so I could finally give my thoughts. XD Occasionally, I enjoy a good, fun puzzle game, and [i]Clutter 18: Joe's Ultimate Challenge - Collector's Edition[/i] definitely has plenty of puzzles. I like that there's a wide variety of puzzle games, so you don't get bored from playing the same type of puzzle over and over. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3598856052 https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3598856341 The gameplay is quite fun, but the preset timer can prove a bit challenging (and maybe stressful) if you're not used to these games. Thankfully, you can adjust the game's settings to set the timer to infinite (or give you, at least, more time), give you unlimited hints, etc. This is great if you're looking for a more relaxed experience. [h2][b]With that said...[/b][/h2] Even though I enjoyed the game overall, it has a few issues. However, I will preface this by saying that even though I certainly could have chosen not to complete all of the levels (and thus, gotten a review out sooner), I'm glad that I didn't do that. Otherwise, I wouldn't have found the issues that I'm about to point out. First, the game lacks Steam achievements. Although this is a minor nitpick and certainly not a dealbreaker for me (I've played and enjoyed more than my fair share of games that don't have Steam achievements), it might discourage those who are looking for them. Next, in regards to the classic mahjong solitaire levels, I have to point this out, only because I've played a lot of them. It bothered me that there's no reshuffle option on boards in case you're unable to match certain items. If this is not an oversight, then I'm guessing that the option might have been omitted to make the levels more challenging. Still, it's pretty much standard for there to be, at least, one reshuffle option, so hopefully, the devs will take this into account. Finally, although most of the levels don't have this feature, a few of them have movable items in which you have to match them. Even though you can adjust the speed at which the items move, there's no option to stop movement entirely. I can understand that the moving items are probably meant to give a bit of challenge, but I think there should be an option to stop movement entirely. This can prove a bit disheartening to those who are prone to motion sickness, but thankfully, you can skip levels. With the art, I liked the designs of the objects and backgrounds, and the colors are very bright. The style leans towards a more realistic approach generally. I'm especially fond of the pictures you get upon completing levels, such as this one: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3598856584 In regards to the music, I really enjoyed listening to the various tracks that are present. While some have a more relaxed, lo-fi vibe, others have soothing classical music pieces. The music is a great accompaniment as you play through the levels. The sound effects are a good touch, too, never feeling weird or out of place. [h2]Conclusion[/h2] Would I recommend [i]Clutter 18: Joe's Ultimate Challenge - Collector's Edition[/i]? If you're looking for a game that has plenty of puzzle levels and you don't mind the lack of Steam achievements, I'd recommend giving this a try. It's definitely worth the price point, especially since it took me almost 100 hours to complete all the levels. With that said, if you pick up this game, I'd recommend playing it in bits and pieces rather than going through the gauntlet, like I did. :o It could use a few improvements, but overall, I had a very fun experience with this game and I'd like to give the other [i]Clutter[/i] games a try someday. Finally, I'd like to give a huge thank you to Grey Alien Games for the review copy. It was quite the experience playing through the levels but without a doubt, worth the time. ^^ [quote]For more detailed, fully complete, high quality reviews like this, please follow [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/44702020/]The Introverted Gamer[/url], prioritizing heart and soul always. ^^[/quote]

This is a great addition to the long running Clutter game series. New puzzles types and item sets are also definitely some of the best of recent releases. Well worth it for any fan of match 2, match 3, or puzzle games in general. Many hours of playtime plus more way to play than just the main 'quest" (which is more like an ongoing increase in difficulty to beat the clock, but you CAN turn off the clock if you are NOT a fan of timed games without any negative effect incurred). Prefer to find the one unique item in a batch of other items? This has you covered. want to test your ability with pure black and white piles of items in a mixed pile trying to find all the matches before the clock runs down? This has you covered. That is only two such examples, there are far more puzzle types than this included so it stays amusing for longer sessions of play as well as short ones. If you have a hard time trying to understand what this game is, I would say if you enjoyed word searches or spot the difference books as a child, such as the old highlights magazine most of you may be familiar with, you will enjoy this series without any issue. For anyone not familiar with that magazine: The goal is to find the right objects or find the right puzzle piece equivalent or spot out that one odd man out item. Am excellent game to wind down after along day of school or work. Well worth the cost.

Great for exercising your brain. Has helped me with Focus.

Another winner from the best Clutter maker around. Joe is the best puzzle maker in the world. Love these games and they give you hours and hours of pure fun!

Clutter has lots of variety of matching, finding what doesn't have matches, mahjong, puzzles, sliding puzzles and word puzzles. Hours of playtime. Much of the puzzles are relaxing, while some are not. There's an option to play in timed mode or not. I enjoy playing Clutter and recommend it.

Great, relaxing game (once I turn off the timers). Runs very well on macOS via CrossOver/Wine.

クラッタ―シリーズを全てしています。とても楽しいから新作が出るたびにワクワクしています。 けれど今回の１８は初めて【ガッカリ】した内容でした。１９を期待しています。